The Shabbat before the holiday of Purim is known as Shabbat Zakhor (“Remember!”). We read an additional Torah passage (Deuteronomy 25:17-19) recalling Amalek, a genocidal enemy from our distant past who is both the spiritual and physical ancestor of Haman, the villain of the Purim story. Remember what Amalek did
Reprinted by permission of the Cleveland Jewish News. This d’var Torah is one of a series influenced by the Me’am Loez Sephardic Torah commentary. If we review briefly the last several parshiot of Exodus, we see an interesting pattern. We began with mythic moments of redemption from slavery and the
In a famous Hasidic saying, the Kotzker Rebbe was once asked: “Where does God dwell?” to which he replied, “Wherever you let Him in.” So this week as I read the Torah portion I have wondered about all the places where people let God into their lives, and the places
For most people the answer appears obvious. “Of course,” they would answer, “who wouldn’t?” Prosperity is a wonderful blessing. We all want to live well. We pray that our children will never lack the things they need and will be able to enjoy at least some of what they want.
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